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At least the placekickers were in good form.
Sebastian Janikowski made field goals of 50, 51 and 24 yards Sunday night, lifting the Oakland Raiders past the Philadelphia Eagles 16-10 in the Hall of Fame game to open the NFL preseason.
Philadelphia's David Akers set a game record with a 55-yarder in the second quarter.
Eagles RB Bruce Perry was carried off on a stretcher with 1:14 remaining, his head immobilized. The Eagles trainer said that initially, Perry lost feeling in his arms and legs, but that feeling in both returned quickly. He was diagnosed with a concussion.
Perry was tackled by rookie Timi Wusu on a running play. Players from both sides stood silently or kneeled in prayer before Perry was removed. Perry gave a thumbs-up as he was wheeled to an ambulance and taken to a hospital.
It was a sloppy performance by everyone on offense except Philadelphia's starters. As usual, the defenses were in control early in the preseason; the Raiders forced five turnovers in Art Shell's return as coach.
Shell was rehired a dozen years after being fired as Oakland's coach. His mission: bringing back the glory of the franchise for which he was a Hall of Fame tackle.
In front of former Raiders coach John Madden, who was enshrined Saturday, Shell got off to a winning start.
Had the starters played longer for Philly, though, the night might not have been successful for Oakland.
In his one-series appearance, Donovan McNabb hit all three passes for 29 yards on a 61-yard drive to Brian Westbrook's 1-yard touchdown run. McNabb is returning from sports hernia surgery that cut short his 2005 season, a major reason the Eagles finished 6-10.
"We came with a different attitude," McNabb said. "This is something that's serious for us. We were prepared to come out and have a good showing."
Westbrook, coming back from a foot sprain that cost him the final four games of 2005, had 32 yards rushing and a 14-yard reception in his short night.
"I think as an offensive unit we're out there trying to prove we can run the ball," Westbrook said. "We've certainly committed a lot of time to the running game and we did it out there in the first preseason game."
The Eagles made Oakland's starting defense look leaky in taking the 7-0 edge, and the Raiders did little on offense with their first-stringers until getting a break.
Three plays after Aaron Brooks' wobbly pass was picked off by Roderick Hood, Jeff Garcia returned the favor. The veteran QB, brought in as McNabb's backup this year, made a poor pass toward another Philly addition, Jabar Gaffney. Fabian Washington intercepted and sped 40 yards down the left sideline to the Philadelphia 23.
"I was excited at the time," Washington said. "But then I realized I can't take this into the regular season."
Lamont Jordan gained 14 yards on the final play of the opening period, then Brooks hit Courtney Anderson in the front of the end zone to tie it.
"I actually thought I wouldn't get it, but you never know unless you try," Anderson said. "I threw my hands up there and caught it."
Akers untied it with his record kick.
Oakland's defense provided another superb chance in the third quarter when Grant Irons sacked Koy Detmer, who fumbled at his 13. The Raiders got nothing out of it when holder Shane Lechler bobbled the snap on an attempted field goal and Janikowski never got off a kick.
He did get off the 51-yarder in the third quarter to tie it, though. His 50-yarder early in the fourth period made it 13-10, and his 24-yarder finished the scoring.
The Hall of Fame paid tribute to Bill Willis, the first black player in the NFL, at halftime. Willis was enshrined in 1977.
Also on hand were the other living members of the Class of 2006: Troy Aikman, Warren Moon, Rayfield Wright and Harry Carson. The late Reggie White, who began his NFL career with the Eagles, was represented by his widow, Sara.
Source: AP
Sebastian Janikowski made field goals of 50, 51 and 24 yards Sunday night, lifting the Oakland Raiders past the Philadelphia Eagles 16-10 in the Hall of Fame game to open the NFL preseason.
Philadelphia's David Akers set a game record with a 55-yarder in the second quarter.
Eagles RB Bruce Perry was carried off on a stretcher with 1:14 remaining, his head immobilized. The Eagles trainer said that initially, Perry lost feeling in his arms and legs, but that feeling in both returned quickly. He was diagnosed with a concussion.
Perry was tackled by rookie Timi Wusu on a running play. Players from both sides stood silently or kneeled in prayer before Perry was removed. Perry gave a thumbs-up as he was wheeled to an ambulance and taken to a hospital.
It was a sloppy performance by everyone on offense except Philadelphia's starters. As usual, the defenses were in control early in the preseason; the Raiders forced five turnovers in Art Shell's return as coach.
Shell was rehired a dozen years after being fired as Oakland's coach. His mission: bringing back the glory of the franchise for which he was a Hall of Fame tackle.
In front of former Raiders coach John Madden, who was enshrined Saturday, Shell got off to a winning start.
Had the starters played longer for Philly, though, the night might not have been successful for Oakland.
In his one-series appearance, Donovan McNabb hit all three passes for 29 yards on a 61-yard drive to Brian Westbrook's 1-yard touchdown run. McNabb is returning from sports hernia surgery that cut short his 2005 season, a major reason the Eagles finished 6-10.
"We came with a different attitude," McNabb said. "This is something that's serious for us. We were prepared to come out and have a good showing."
Westbrook, coming back from a foot sprain that cost him the final four games of 2005, had 32 yards rushing and a 14-yard reception in his short night.
"I think as an offensive unit we're out there trying to prove we can run the ball," Westbrook said. "We've certainly committed a lot of time to the running game and we did it out there in the first preseason game."
The Eagles made Oakland's starting defense look leaky in taking the 7-0 edge, and the Raiders did little on offense with their first-stringers until getting a break.
Three plays after Aaron Brooks' wobbly pass was picked off by Roderick Hood, Jeff Garcia returned the favor. The veteran QB, brought in as McNabb's backup this year, made a poor pass toward another Philly addition, Jabar Gaffney. Fabian Washington intercepted and sped 40 yards down the left sideline to the Philadelphia 23.
"I was excited at the time," Washington said. "But then I realized I can't take this into the regular season."
Lamont Jordan gained 14 yards on the final play of the opening period, then Brooks hit Courtney Anderson in the front of the end zone to tie it.
"I actually thought I wouldn't get it, but you never know unless you try," Anderson said. "I threw my hands up there and caught it."
Akers untied it with his record kick.
Oakland's defense provided another superb chance in the third quarter when Grant Irons sacked Koy Detmer, who fumbled at his 13. The Raiders got nothing out of it when holder Shane Lechler bobbled the snap on an attempted field goal and Janikowski never got off a kick.
He did get off the 51-yarder in the third quarter to tie it, though. His 50-yarder early in the fourth period made it 13-10, and his 24-yarder finished the scoring.
The Hall of Fame paid tribute to Bill Willis, the first black player in the NFL, at halftime. Willis was enshrined in 1977.
Also on hand were the other living members of the Class of 2006: Troy Aikman, Warren Moon, Rayfield Wright and Harry Carson. The late Reggie White, who began his NFL career with the Eagles, was represented by his widow, Sara.
Source: AP
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